Peer Reviewed

A research team from City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK), in collaboration with researchers from several other universities, has successfully developed a novel functionalised membrane that significantly improves the efficiency of collecting and detecting marine organisms’ eDNA, providing a more sensitive and reliable technical tool for monitoring marine biodiversity.

Recognized for pioneering work on adhesive and electroconductive hydrogels for biological tissue regeneration

Researchers from National Taiwan University have developed a simple solvent-mixing strategy that optimizes the microstructures of all-polymer organic solar cells, enabling ultrafast energy transfer and boosting power conversion efficiency beyond 17%.

Kyocera Corporation and Tohoku University have developed a new technology that integrates optical isolators directly onto silicon photonics chips using laser annealing. Building on their previous collaboration, the two organizations will continue working toward commercialization and more efficient, sustainable information technologies.

Researchers developed a flexible, porous parylene electrode that delivers anti-inflammatory steroids directly into the inner ear, significantly reducing surgical trauma and preserving residual hearing.

A study co-led by Professor Yung Wing-ho, Chair Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at City University of Hong Kong, together with scholars from The Chinese University of Hong Kong, has explained the underlying cause, revealing how the brain dynamically reorganises itself to break through the cognitive bottleneck and achieve efficient, simultaneous multitasking.

Nationwide Japanese survey reveals how cultural worldviews relate to environmental policy support

For decades, scientists have understood proteins primarily through two defining features: their amino acid sequence and their three-dimensional structure. This framework has driven major advances in biology, biotechnology, and medicine, culminating in recent artificial intelligence tools capable of predicting protein structures with remarkable accuracy. Yet a fundamental challenge remains: even when a protein's sequence and structure are known, predicting its function, interactions, and behavior often remains difficult. An international team of researchers from Japan, Finland, Italy, and the United States now reports evidence that part of this missing information may lie in an often-overlooked component of proteins: the highly organized water surrounding them. In a study accepted for publication in Nature Communications, the team provides the first direct three-dimensional visualization of sequence-dependent hydration architectures surrounding peptide assemblies at sub-nanometer resolution using advanced three-dimensional atomic force microscopy (3D-AFM) (Fig.1).

In addition to shrinking and regrowing, shrew skulls change shape with the seasons.

When tiny devices called MEMS (used in microphones, biosensors) undergo physical stress, their performance is compromised. Researchers found a new way to track this stress using a sensor that is part of the device.

Among adults with type 2 diabetes recovering from dialysis-requiring acute kidney injury, starting an SGLT-2 inhibitor within 30 days of hospital discharge was associated with fewer serious kidney events than starting 31 to 90 days later. The study found no significant differences in death, major cardiovascular events, or recorded short-term safety outcomes.

Two new papers published in Nature offer new insights into how this group of ancient humans looked, evolved, and behaved.

Many cutting-edge technologies rely on molecules that can be switched on and off with light, but making them respond efficiently to visible light without losing stability has long been a challenge. Researchers at Tohoku University, working with Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, solved this by attaching a "molecular antenna" that captures visible light and funnels the energy directly into the photoswitch, achieving some of the highest visible-light sensitivities ever reported.

Researchers at Tohoku University have discovered that changing the number of layers in a crystal can systematically tune both the magnetic and topological properties of a material. By synthesizing a brand-new compound, the team showed how adding spacer layers shifts magnetic order from antiferromagnetic to ferrimagnetic - while also producing a highly tilted "type-II" Dirac electron state that can't exist for particles in a vacuum.

A team led by the University of Osaka researchers discovered that cells producing IgG1 antibodies multiply more, are less prone to cell death in the spleen, and migrate more efficiently to the bone marrow, where long-lived antibody-producing cells can become established. Understanding how these cells gain these advantages could help researchers design vaccines that provide longer-lasting protection against infection.

Finding better materials to store hydrogen safely and efficiently is key to clean energy, but AI models trained on incomplete data can recommend candidates that don't actually work in practice. An international team led by Tohoku University, drawing on insight from 69 researchers, has proposed a "physics-aware" framework that combines thermodynamic constraints, reproducible data, and real experimental feedback to make AI-guided materials discovery more reliable. The roadmap could help accelerate the search for practical hydrogen storage solutions to support future clean-energy systems.

Ageing muscle shows gene changes in its supporting matrix, offering new insight into the biology of sarcopenia.

Scientists have turned a common blue pigment into a powerful tool for fighting climate change. Researchers at Tohoku University, Hokkaido University, and AZUL Energy created a copper phthalocyanine catalyst that converts carbon dioxide directly into methane fuel in a single step, reaching nearly 80% efficiency and sustaining performance for 80+ hours. The breakthrough could make carbon recycling more practical and scalable using an inexpensive, readily available material.

Researchers at the University of Osaka discovered FoeAB, a previously unknown bacterial pump that exports the antibiotic fosfomycin. By combining transport experiments with cryo-electron microscopy, the team revealed how the protein recognizes and moves the drug across the cell membrane. The findings expand understanding of antibiotic efflux in Gram-positive bacteria and could support new strategies to counter drug resistance and improve treatment of bacterial infections.

- Professors Sangyoon Han and Jaesok Yu’s teams use semiconductor fabrication processes to develop a “non-contact, ultra-high-sensitivity” ultrasonic receiver - Detects MHz-range ultrasound through the air without the need for gel, achieving a 25,000-fold improvement in responsivity per unit sensing area - Expected to revolutionize precision nondestructive testing of contamination-sensitive components such as semiconductor wafers and secondary batteries - Published in Photonics Research, a renowned international journal in the field of optics

• Principal Researcher Sang-Chul Lee’s team presents an automatic compensation technique (Ada-Comp) that prevents declines in recommendation performance for specific user groups • Overcomes structural limitations of graph neural network (GNN)-based recommender systems, establishing a standard for trustworthy next-generation AI • Undergraduate researcher Eugene Jeong participates as first author; findings presented at KDD-UC ’26, a world-leading academic conference

Based on the layered design to decouple polarization, tunneling, and screening for the functionality of each constituent material, it is possible to overcome the drawback of conventional ferroelectric tunneling memories and reach low-power consumption and high on/off ratio.

Researchers at the University of Osaka discovered a simple, rigid aromatic hydrocarbon that breaks the usual rule. Under pressure, its crystals grow 1.7 times brighter and shift color from light blue to yellow, with a record-high sensitivity of 37.4 nm/GPa, nearly double the previous best. An elongated, uniformly slender molecular shape was the key, offering a new design principle for pressure-responsive materials without complex flexible frameworks.

New technique provides high-resolution structures of notoriously difficult proteins

A new study shows that the Pt/C catalyst state before ionomer addition governs later ink dispersion and electrochemical Pt accessibility.

Researchers at Tohoku University have combined multiple tools to create an automated, self-improving AI workflow that may improve our search for polymer material candidates so that it is less expensive, less costly, and more environmentally friendly.

Mapping interacting galaxies reveals how turbulence can suppress star formation

Ateneo researchers co-design comics with Filipino parents to help families recognize, address, and prevent school bullying.

Researchers led by the University of Osaka developed a reusable light-responsive adhesive that switches adhesion at the interface instead of weakening the whole material. UV-A light reduces interfacial adhesion, enabling selective peeling without observable residue, while UV-C light restores adhesion. The response was retained through repeated cycles without solvent processing. The approach could simplify disassembly, repair, and recycling of electronics, vehicles, and semiconductor components, supporting more circular manufacturing across industries.

A study in budding yeast suggests that changes in membrane lipids trigger a braking system that slows internal protein transport when the endoplasmic reticulum comes under stress, comparable to modern logistics networks where shipments are slowed when distribution hubs are under stress.